Designer clothes, expensive jewellery, high-tech toys... Latin American elites are big spenders

Covering millions of affluent adults, top management and business decision makers across the world, the Synovate PAX survey regularly tracks media consumption, ownership and purchase intentions of upscale consumers in Asia, Australia, The Middle East and now, Latin America.

"Affluent consumers and business executives in Latin America are world citizens," said Ignacio Galceran, CEO of Synovate in Latin America. "They travel the world for both business and pleasure. They have similar purchasing power to elites in developed markets and want the best products and services that global marketers can offer."

PAX Latin America surveyed 4,740 upscale consumers aged 25 to 65 between February and May 2007 in Mexico, Brazil and Argentina. Business Decision Makers include senior management/ department heads or above in companies with 10+ employees, and Top Management includes Business Decision Makers as well as those with positions such as CEO, CFO, MD, Director or the equivalent.

Technology is tops

Computer penetration is quite high among Latin American elites, with 69% owning either a laptop or desktop computer, rising to 82% among Top Management. Three quarters of Argentinean elites own a desktop PC, more than affluent Brazilians or Mexicans, but Mexican elites lead the pack when it comes to laptops – 37% have one.

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Staying connected

Latin Americans are more connected than ever. Thirty-nine percent of elites currently own a mobile with both Internet access capability and a camera. This figure rises to 45% among Mexican elites and to 66% among Top Management across all countries surveyed.

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Driving in droves

Over three-quarters of Latin American elites own one or more cars, rising substantially to 93% amongst Top Management. Ownership is highest in Mexico (88%), followed by Brazil (76%) and Argentina (60%), and slightly higher among Latin American men (79%) than women (75%).

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Designer duds

In Mexico, elite spending on clothing and accessories is particularly high, with 17% of Top Management owning designer clothes or leather goods worth over US$1,000. The findings also show:

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Raising their (beer) glasses

Local beer is the favoured alcoholic beverage across all countries surveyed, consumed by 37% of elites – and 42% of affluent Brazilians – in the past four weeks. Less than one third of Latin Americans surveyed had consumed wine, though the figure rose to 45% among Top Management.

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Avid media users

"Latin American affluents and business elites are internationally oriented and use global media of all types to stay connected to the world," said Steve Garton, Global Head of Media for Synovate. "They are also always looking for new products and services. It's essential for marketers to closely watch the behaviour of these sophisticated consumers as they are typically the trend-setters and early product adopters," he added.